


When It Rains

by s_u_n_b_i_r_d



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Angst, Angst and Feels, Comfort/Angst, Dib learns a secret and he does not take it well, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Implied Relationships, Lots of drama, Other, Reader is a Mama Bear/Papa Wolf type who doesn't like it when someone threatens their 'kid', Reader-Insert, a bit of warning to people waiting for/about to read the second chapter - Reader will have NO chill, age difference romance, alcohol mention, and did I mention angst, cuss words in the second chapter, fight me, i am under the firm belief that Dib needs to be appreciated more, implied romantic feelings, reader is like 20s-30s and Membrane is like 40 or whatever, smoking and tobacco mention, that hurt me to type out as much as it hurt you to read, the feels on this bus go round and round, very spicy yes i know
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-14
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2020-10-17 06:16:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 19,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20616356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/s_u_n_b_i_r_d/pseuds/s_u_n_b_i_r_d
Summary: It's the middle of the night, during the worst storm of the year, and Dib Membrane shows up at your doorstep with a terrible, terrible secret to share.





	1. Take Me Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Inspired by this wonderful piece of fanart by glossomer-arts:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays

When it rains, it pours.

Summer thunderstorms are always a sight to behold, but this one has to be the biggest one yet. Probably the worst you’ll get this year. It started out earlier that morning as a light drizzle that left the city in a silvery fog. It steadily grew stronger, and by the time five o’clock had rolled around, flash flood warnings were in effect and the thunder that boomed overhead was loud enough to rattle your teeth . It took you an extra forty five minutes to get home thanks to the low visibility and the deep, deep water you all had to drive very carefully through. You probably should have pulled over and waited for it to let up some, but then again, you didn’t want to be stranded anywhere for the night either.

It’s a miracle you made it home at all.

But you’re here now, in your apartment, and though it’s not the prettiest place to be, it’s cozy and warm and you feel safe. It’s eleven o’clock at night. You ate your favorite food for dinner. The dishes are washed and the laundry is all folded, and you even managed to mop, vacuum and take out the trash too. There’s some easy listening playing on your laptop, everything smells clean and fresh, and you’re standing in front of the glass doors of your balcony in your pajamas. You watch the raindrops pelt the windows and take sip after sip of your favorite hot drink. You don’t work tomorrow. There’s nothing left to do, but you’re still not quite sleepy. So you walk over to the closet, grab a fluffy blanket, and curl up on the couch with a new book you got a week ago. You're excited to read it. It's about all the ghost stories and urban legends from the place you grew up in, a very thoughtful early birthday gift from your good friend Dib Membrane.

You’ve known him for a while now. Some would say that the two of you are the best of friends. You bumped into him completely by chance in the shelves of the paranormal fiction section at the library. As the two of you got into a conversation, you soon learned that you shared an interest in legends, spirits, cryptids and the unexplained. And you've been like peas in a pod ever since.

He latched onto you almost instantly, texting you, calling you, and tracking you down around town 24/7. Clearly, he was eager to talk to someone with the same beliefs and ideas as him. It was a little much to take in at first, but as you grew closer, you had grown to be quite fond of him as well. It’s a bit of an odd friendship. You’re just your average, twenty-something nobody with a love for the spooky, more mysterious side of life. You have your strengths and virtues, but you wouldn't say that there's anything extraordinary about yourself. He’s different. He's quirky and spirited and deeply devoted to everything he loves and believes in. He's around half your age, maybe even less - but he’s sweet and funny and very easy to talk to.

He’s also incredibly smart.

Half the time, when he’s talking to you about one of his theories, you can barely understand what he’s saying. This twelve-year old kid frequently goes off on long tangents about astronomy and physics and chemistry and every branch of mathematics in the book, just TALKING about it like it’s completely normal, and all you can do is sit back and think to yourself, _Wow. This kid is going to be something **amazing** someday. He’s going to do great things._

You’re not surprised, though. His father is the most well-known scientist on the face of the planet, and for good reason. Professor Membrane’s accomplishments and breakthroughs have literally revolutionized technology, science and society itself several times over. His hard work and perseverance has helped everyone in the world in some shape or form, and even though he could easily retire early and live out the rest of his life in luxury and comfort, he doesn’t. He keeps going. He keeps moving forward, step by step, not for himself, but for you and everyone else that benefits from his research and developments. It’s amazing. It’s inspiring.

And you feel the same way about Dib.

You’ve known Dib for a long time now, and it’s safe to say that you have a pretty good handle on who he is and what makes him tick, whether he’s been upfront about it with you or not. You know that his Dad is really strict and skeptical about Dib’s unwavering faith in the paranormal. You know that Dib is an outcast at school because all of the other kids, and even some of the teachers, make fun of him for that faith. You know that there are people in the city, at your work, at Membrane Labs, even on Truthshrieker and the Swollen Eyeball Network who relentlessly, mercilessly, mock him for all the mistakes he’s made and all that he’s ever done to prove himself.

And you’ve always, _always_ chewed those people out thoroughly for it. You’ve looked them in the eye with a cold glare and torn them apart verbally, your vicious, acidic words leaving them in metaphorical pieces.....well, at the very least. Truth be told, when the harassment got too intense to stomach, you’ve thrown hands and sent a few of his nastier, less forgivable critics to the ER. You’ve never let Dib see or hear about any of that, though. Poor kid has enough on his mind.

Dib never voices it, never even comes close to bringing it up, but you can tell that there’s a lot on his shoulders that deeply weighs him down. Self-loathing. Self-doubt. Loneliness. Insecurity. And a burning desire to be validated and respected, and…and loved.

Just thinking about it makes your heart weary, and you close your book and let out a long sigh.

Dib Membrane gets a lot of crap thrown his way that he doesn’t deserve.

And yet…he keeps going.

The thought makes you smile. No matter how many times this little kid is knocked down, he gets back up. No matter how many times the world tells him to shut up, he keeps speaking out. He never abandons his ideas or beliefs, no matter how many people spit on them and laugh. His resourcefulness is legendary, and his persistence unrivaled. To put it simply, the kid never stops. He _never_ quits, he _never_ slows down, _he never. Gives. Up._ For better or for worse, Dib rejects the comfort of complacency and silence, and with determination you rarely see in other people, he follows his dreams and his goals regardless of how long it will take for him to achieve them. And maybe some of that drive is out of a deep and selfish desire to be validated, to be recognized by his critics and bullies and yeah, even his Dad, as someone that they should respect. But you know there’s more to it.

You know. Because he’s told you so himself.

\--------------------------

"Why do you do it?"

It was nine o'clock at night. The two of you had been grabbing dinner at a new food truck called Neat-o Burrito, after a few fruitless hours of ghost-hunting below one of the city's oldest buildings. Neither of you had managed to get even a single EVP out of the experience, so you decided to treat Dib to dinner to lift his spirits. You had been sitting across from him at a nearby picnic table, listening to crickets and cicadas when the question hit you. Dib, who was in the middle of a huge plate of nachos, had frozen in mid-chew at the sound of your words. "Whuh wah thah?"

You took a bite of your burrito before asking again. "This paranormal stuff. You're always trying to prove it's real. If nobody believes you, no matter how hard you try, then why do you even bother?" You shrugged. "I'm not judging you, but, I don't know, why not take up video games, or comic books, or writing fanfiction or whatever? Wouldn't that be easier? Why the paranormal?"

Dib swallowed and finished off the last of his soda before answering. "Because...I love the paranormal! It's...I mean it's...." He scratched his head self consciously and avoided your eyes. "I-it's everything to me."

"Yeah, but...why? _Why_ is it everything to you?"

Dib blinked and looked down at himself, and in that moment, you realized that no one had ever asked him that question before. There was a moment or two of silence broken up only by the employees of the food truck and the tinny mariachi music playing from their radio. A minute passed, and still, Dib did not answer you. So you smiled and reached out and squeezed his hand gently. "Hey, I'm sorry, okay?" you said softly. "I didn't mean to say something I shouldn't have. Forget I said anything." You looked up. "I'm gonna go grab myself a churro, do you w - ?"

"I want to show people the truth."

You jumped at the sudden sound of his voice. He wasn't looking at you when he said that. In fact, his eyes were very distant right then. It was like he was looking inside himself and seeing who he really was, for the very first time in his life. "I want to show people what's really out there in the world," he said slowly. "There are so many incredible, fascinating things in this universe. I want to show them to people. I want to show them all the things that live and breathe and happen right under their noses, every single day. I want them to just...just _wake up_ and understand that while they're all busy obsessing over stupid things, there's a whole world of possibilities right here, right now. I want them...I NEED them to understand that there's something bigger out there, just _waiting_ to be discovered! And...!"

He paused, opening and closing his mouth as if he was trying to find the words to say. Suddenly, he had jumped up in his seat, putting a foot on the table with a loud clatter and looking you straight in the eye. "And we can't just _ignore what's out there_ just because we're afraid of it! Just because it's the easy way out! No. NO! We have to _deal_ with it, no matter how uncomfortable or life-shattering or horrifying it is! _We have to face the truth!_ One of these days, humanity is going to stop running away from the things that hide in the shadows and fight back! And I'm going to help make that happen! That's who I am!" His eyes burned with a fire you had never seen in a twelve-year old before, and it was amazing. _"That's who Dib Membrane is!_"

Everyone in the parking lot had gone deathly silent. All eyes were on Dib, and the moment he had realized it, his bravado evaporated. He slunk back in his seat, flashing the onlookers a nervous smile before shyly looking back up at you. You were staring at him like you were just now seeing him for the first time in your life, and in a way, you were. "You...Dib...you're..." You laugh incredulously, and you begin to smile and shake your head. "You are _so cool._"

"W-what?!" Dib had expected scorn, rejection, maybe even an accusation of insanity, but he hadn't expected praise. It had surprised him, and in an effort to save face, he had snorted and turned away, his face a bright pink. "Pfft, no! Come on!" he laughed, twiddling his fingers. "Y-you're just saying that."

"No, I mean it," you said firmly. You leaned forward in your seat, and he was taken back by the warm and genuine expression on your face. "You are the most amazing kid I have ever met, Dib Membrane. If I had half of your potential when I was your age, who knows where I'd be? Who knows where ANY of us would be if we were anything like you?"

He squirmed around in his seat and babbled out a few "Not really"'s and "Oh no"'s, turning pinker by the second and shyly looking away. Wanting him to understand, you had reached out and gently lifted his chin up so he could look you in the eye again. Your face was gentle and serious. "_Dib._ You're gonna go places. You're gonna do some truly incredible things. And you're gonna change the world someday. Just like your Dad."

You knew how he felt about his Dad. You knew how badly he wanted and still wants to live up to his legacy. And you could tell that your words had hit him hard that day. You'll never forget the way Dib stared at you then, his eyes shining with emotion. Slowly, so slowly, he beamed with pride, and it was the cutest, most heartwarming thing you had ever seen in your life. "Yeah," he breathed. "Just like my Dad." He sat up and leaned forward, almost bouncing out of his seat from excitement. "You'll see! I'm going to be just like him someday! Count on it!"

\--------------------------------

From that moment forward, things had changed between the two of you. It seemed that everywhere you turned, Dib was right there by your side. You were always the first one to hear about any accomplishment he made, and you were always the first one he vented to when things went wrong. You were the first person he came to for advice, or for help, or sometimes for nothing at all. It did not go unnoticed by his family. Clembrane commented loudly and openly on how often Dib spoke of you when you weren't around, and how absolutely _adorable_ it was, much to Dib's utter mortification. Once or twice you caught Gaz teasing him about having a crush on you, something Dib vehemently denied several times over. "I-it's not like that!" he always cried, his face red. "Stop saying that! That's not how I feel about them at all!"

"Yeah, okay," she would snicker, looking back down at her Gameslave 2. "Whatever you say."

Even Professor Membrane, the world's busiest man, had caught on to his son's deep admiration for you. The moment he did, he became a _lot_ more present. You were under the impression that he had taken an interest in you not because he cared about...well, YOU, but instead out of curiosity for the person that his son spent his time with. It was a little intimidating at first, especially since you've been harboring less-than-platonic feelings for the Professor since the two of you first met, but...you understood completely. When you were little, a wise old rat once taught you a very important lesson:

_All fathers care for their sons._

And even though he worked from dawn to dusk and was singlehandedly revolutionizing the world, Professor Membrane was still a father.

So you saw him more often. You were invited to dinners, then breakfasts, then Family Nights, and even Skool functions and holiday parties. When you ran into each other around town, you got into pleasant conversations. Or sometimes you'd just see him when you were dropping Dib off after a cryptid hunt. Yet...you never really talked to the man. Every time you were all together, you'd actually be talking with Dib or Gaz, or even Clembrane or Foodio, instead of the Professor himself. Though sometimes, if you looked out of the corner of your eye, you caught him staring at you. Whenever you looked up or acknowledged it however, he hurriedly looked away. You were always gracious about it, politely refusing to point it out, but moments like that always highlighted the fact that while the two of you knew each other....you didn't actually know anything about each other. Not even what the other person thought.

Every time you caught him staring, you always had to wonder just how he felt about you.

One day, he invited you into his home an hour before Skool let out. Right from the get go, he was surprisingly more...human...than you've ever seen him before. That loud, commanding demeanor he usually had was gone, and it was replaced by a down-to-earth, somewhat socially awkward man. He seated you at the kitchen table and fixed you a cup of tea, and once the initial anxiety had left you, you were more relaxed in his presence than you had ever been before in your life. The two of you had a good long talk about a lot of things. About how hard it is for Dib to make friends. About how his father worries that he'll never be able to connect with other people outside his family. About how hard it is to juggle personal and professional life when you're so badly needed by the world at large. About how he wishes he was there for his kids more. You learned a lot about the man in the span of sixty minutes, and he learned a lot about you.

And learning about you seemed to put him at ease.

Five minutes before the kids got home, he finally cut to the chase. "I need to be perfectly honest with you - you're not what I expected at all."

"H-how is that, Sir?" you had asked, sitting up a little straighter.

"You're...that is....Hmm." He took a sip of his tea. "You're...a believer in the parasciences. I don't understand anything about that subject. And frankly, I think it's all nonsense. And on some level, I think the people who put such a deep seated faith in it are...." He ran a hand through his hair, uncharacteristically nervous. "H-how exactly do I put this?"

"A few fries short of a combo meal?" you offered, smirking softly.

He laughed and tugged his collar anxiously. "I was going to say 'misguided.'"

"'Misguided' is a lot nicer than what I usually get."

He laughed again, but as he looked at his reflection in his tea, he grew serious. He spoke your name - your real name - for the very first time. "You're....a good person. I'm glad my son has you in my life."

You nearly dropped your mug. "W-what was that?" you asked gracelessly.

"I-I'm happy that Dib has you in _his_ life," he said hastily, dunking his teabag in and out of his drink and averting your gaze suddenly. "You're the kind of person he needs. Resourceful. Open. Smart. Sensible. Passionate. Fun to be with, and easy to talk to. You show my son kindness he doesn't get often from the world. And I...." He looked back up at you. "I...deeply appreciate you for who you are."

The clock ticked steadily on the wall as the two of you sat there in his kitchen staring at each other. You were frozen in place, a dark pink flush spreading across your face, and the way you looked at him with such wide, shining eyes seemed to throw him for a loop. He cleared his throat nervously and drummed his fingers on the table, trying to piece together the words he wanted to say. "I want to be a better father," he confessed. "I- no scratch that. I _need_ to be a better father. And that means I need to support my children, even if we share different interests. I may not understand anything about what you and my son believe in, but that doesn't matter. It's his greatest passion. For better or for worse, parascience is real to _him._ And I need you to understand that how my son feels about _you_ is very real as well. So please."

He leaned forward and placed his hand on yours. His voice had been softer than you thought possible for someone so often hammy and over-the-top. "Look out for him, would you? Be someone my son can look up to. Make sure he knows right from wrong, make sure you keep him on a good path, and please...don't let him get hurt. Don't let anyone or anything hurt him." He took both of your hands in his and looked you straight in the eyes. "Promise me you'll take care of my son."

"I....y-y-yes. Y-yes, of course," you had told him breathlessly. "I won't...I won't let anything happen to your son, Sir. I promise." 

You've never seen him without his goggles or his lab coat, but you'd known him long enough to tell that he was smiling. "Thank you. Y-..._That_ means a lot to me."

\-------------------------------

You are broken out of your memories by the sound of someone knocking on your door.

The book nearly falls out of your hands as you jump from the unexpected noise. It broke through the sound of rain and thunder like a brick through a glass window, sudden and unwanted. You turn your head to look at the clock. It's almost midnight. You're not expecting visitors, your neighbors are early sleepers, and it's way too late to be your landlord. Who would be knocking at this hour?

The knocking comes back, loud and insistent, almost desperate. You get up, slowly and suspiciously, and for a brief second, you consider not answering. This is too out of the ordinary to be trusted. Maybe it's instinct, maybe it's one too many gothic horror novels, but being alone on a stormy night and hearing someone knock at your door is giving you some seriously bad vibes. 

But then you hear a voice call your name from the other side, and your heart sinks the moment you realize who it belongs to.

"Dib?"

You throw off the blanket and rush to the door. You pull it open, praying you're wrong - 

And there he is.

His hair is disheveled and his glasses hang crooked on his face. He's looking up at you, breathing hard and clutching something tightly to his chest like it's a life preserver and he's in the middle of the ocean. His clothes and boots are covered in mud, and his trench coat is pulled up over his head in a futile effort to protect him from the rain. He croaks out your name again, nearly sagging with relief at the sight of you. "I...I t-thought you w-weren't home."

"Dib, what the _Hell?_ It's the middle of the night! What are you doing-?!" You pause, looking him up and down, your voice rising in pitch when you see the huge puddle he's leaving on the floor. "Did you...did you WALK all the way here?! What were you thinking?! There's a _storm,_ you're gonna catch cold, look at you! You're SHAKING! How could you be so reckless - ?!"

Dib steps forward and takes your hand as he tries to catch his breath. "I, I n-needed to talk to y-you, I n...I n-n-need-It's...it's...!"

His words come out disjointed and desperate, and as you watch him struggle to form coherent sentences, you know that something is very wrong. "Whoa..." you murmur, ushering him into your apartment. "Whoa, whoa buddy, it's, it's _okay._ Dib, I'm sorry for getting upset. You're here now, and whatever this is about, we can talk about it, okay?"

He doesn't answer, just stands there, breathing hard, from emotion or from running all the way out to your place in the rain, you can't tell. You take the trench coat off of his head and rush to get a towel. None of this is making any sense, but you're not about to let him get sick on your watch. You come back and start drying him off, bending down to meet his eye level. "Dib, I'm here. We're gonna talk this out. Whatever this is, we can fix it, okay?" 

Your words seem to reach him, but they do nothing to calm him down. "....N-no," he stutters out, shaking his head. "N-no, you don't understand. Y-you can't, y-you can't FIX this, this is-" He takes a few steps back and bumps into the wall, sliding down it and falling to the floor. "Y-you can't fix the papers, can't fix the truth, can't...._backup._"

And then he starts to cry. Tears fall like the rain outside as he sobs silently on the floor, looking smaller and more vulnerable then you've ever seen him before.

There's a lump in your throat as you watch the scene unfold. You're growing more and more scared by the second. You have NEVER seen Dib this messed up, EVER. He's terrified and shaking like a leaf, and you're starting to wonder if he even knows where he is. You force your fear down and take action, stepping forward and crouching down in front of him. As gently as you can, you cup his face in your hands so he's looking at you again. "Dib, do you want me to call someone?" you ask in a firm, but kind voice. "Do you need me to take you to a doctor?"

The sound of your voice seems to steady him. His breathing is still shallow, but his vision finally focuses as he makes eye contact with you. "I....I f-f-found it," he pants.

"What did you find, Dib?"

"....T-the truth."

His breathing steadies, bit by bit. Then, he sits up and holds something out to you. It's the object he's been cradling to his chest ever since he got to your place. You take it, stunned. It's a dark red briefcase, old and worn, and caked in dirt and mud. "W...what is this?" you ask, looking back at him.

Words seem to be too painful right now. When you ask that, Dib's face crumples, and he shakes his head and claps his hands over his mouth, still shedding tears. You scoot up next to him, and he leans up against you, finding comfort in your presence. With Dib at your side, you gather the briefcase in your lap and open the latches to see what's inside.

Documents.

Lots and lots of documents.

You pick one up and start reading it. It seems to be data on some kind of experiment. There's a lot of technical jargon you're not used to reading, but you've been around Dib long enough to be able to make out the main points of what it's-

....Wait.

Wait, that can't be right.

Frowning, you pick up another page. And another. And another. You get about a quarter of the way through months of scientific calculations, emails, and journal entries before what you're reading finally starts to sink in. Your eyes widen, and there's a growing sickness in your stomach when you notice that the journal entries and some of the scribbly notes are all written in the same wide, neat script - one you've definitely seen before. And as your mind begins to race and the meaning of it all falls into place, your vision starts to blur from the rising panic and the implications of what you've just read. "W-what am I looking at?" you hear yourself ask.

You don't know why the Hell you ask it. You already know. You have the answers right in your lap.

Beside you, Dib has quieted down, but he's far from okay. "Before school let out last week, Miss Bitters gave us an assignment for the summer," he murmurs as he pulls himself away from your side. He pulls his knees to his chest and stares into nothing. "Something about...heritage. We were supposed to make a family tree out of photos, so I tried looking for photos of..." He swallows. "Of my...Mom."

You look down at him. You're not used to hearing that word come out of his mouth. His eyes are red and puffy, but he wipes any remaining tears away before pushing forward. "I always wanted to know more about who she was and what she was like. Ever since I was little. But I was always too afraid to ask. My family just...never talked about her. But this assignment was my chance to change that. To...finally get some answers about who she was, and...and who I am." His voice cracks a little at the end of that sentence, and the expression on his face changes into something dark and hateful. "But when I tried to ask my _Dad_ about her, he just..." Dib punches the wall behind him, seething with anger.

You reach out to squeeze his shoulder, and it grounds him. He lets out a long, weary breath, then continues. "I didn't get any answers from him. But I didn't want to just turn in a tree that was missing a person. So, I thought, if _Dad_ wouldn't give me answers, I'd have to get them on my own. So I did. I went looking for answers, and it took me a week, but I found them. Buried in the backyard under a tree. And..." His chest starts rising up and down unevenly, and he curls up into a little trembling ball. "A-and-!"

It honestly feels like he's about to break down. And now that you've looked inside the briefcase, and seen all the horrible things inside of it, you understand why. The paper you're holding in your hands falls to the floor as you begin to cry. "Dib," you croak out. "Dib, I'm so, so _sorry-"_

“His clone," he wheezes out between sobs. "I’m not his _son,_ I'm his _clone_!”

The word itself sends a chill down your spine, makes everything in the briefcase all the more real. It's terrifying. It's awful. But you ignore your own nausea as you put your hands on Dib's shoulders in an effort to comfort him. He doesn't notice. Through silent sobs, he clutches his head and squeezes his eyes shut, like he's trying to hold himself together. "This entire time, I've been nothing but just another one of his...his stupid science experiments! A failed experiment, something he whipped up to take his place after he dies! A _backup_! That's why I don't fit in anywhere! _That's_ why people don't treat me like a real person! Because I'm _not_ a real person! They can tell I'm not! All my life, everyone's always told me what a mistake I am! That I'm a failure. That I'm a freak. They - !" He covers his face with his hands, his voice small and broken. _"They were **right** all along."_

"Dib, _no,_" you murmur in a crestfallen voice. You don't know what hurts more, the sight of him crying like this or the way he's talking about himself. Desperate to try to fix this however you can, you try to pull him into a hug. "No, no, that's not true-!"

"Yes it is!" he shouts, and suddenly he's on his feet, standing right in front of you and trembling with emotion. As the thunder rages on outside, he motions towards himself, looking down at his hands with absolute disgust. "I'm a _freak!_ And if that wasn't bad enough, I'm a stupid freak! All this time, _all this time,_ I thought I had everything figured out! I though that I saw the world for what it really was! I thought I understood the truth! But I couldn't even see the truth about myself!" His face crumples, and he grits his teeth and clutches his head. "Stupid. Stupid! I'm so, so _stupid-!_"

"Dib, you're NOT stupid!" you cry. Before you know it, you're in front of him, holding him by the shoulders and looking him right in the eye. "You're NOT stupid, and you're NOT a freak! You might be a clone, but you're also the smartest, sweetest kid I know! You're brave, and you're funny, and you never give up! You want to help people! You want to show them the truth! Remember what you told me?! You want to prove the paranormal is real because that's who you are! Because that's who Dib Membrane is - !"

"There IS no Dib Membrane! _**Don't you get it?!**_" He shoves you away, and his voice is the loudest you've ever heard it. "Dib Membrane doesn't exist! He's just a lie! _I'm_ a lie! I'm just a copy, a replacement, _I'm not real!"_

He's hyperventilating by now, his entire body shaking with the force of his sobs. For one terrible moment, you wonder if he can't breathe, and you briefly think about calling someone, anyone, for help. You rush to him and hold him again, desperate to calm him down before he hurts himself. You feel so helpless and lost, but he needs you right now. You HAVE to be there for him. “Dib, Dib, sweetie, look at me! Dib, _look_ at me!"

He does, and the second he does, you guide him through some breaths. You keep doing it until he's breathing normally again. The second he's calm enough to listen, you speak. "Dib, listen to me. You _are_ a real person. No matter how you were made, or what you were made for, you ARE a real person. You have thoughts, and you have feelings, and you make mistakes but you always pick yourself up and keep going. You want to prove that aliens exist. You read about Bigfoot and the Marfa Lights and you dream big and work hard to make those dreams come true. Dib. _Honey."_ You brush a tear away from his face with your thumb. "Does that seriously not sound like a person to you?"

He blinks the tears out of his eyes and looks down at himself, quiet for a minute. "....But that's not what I'm supposed to be doing," he says finally. "I-I'm supposed to be studying REAL science. I'm supposed to take over when my Dad dies. I'm supposed to be JUST LIKE HIM. That's...that's the whole reason I exist, that's what I was made for.....and I failed. I'm a failure, y-you SAW the papers - !"

"Yeah, I saw them," you say, standing up and cutting him off before his dark train of thought can continue. "And you know what? They don't matter. YOU matter. You're not a 'backup' or a 'failure' or a 'freak.' You're the most incredible, amazing, talented kid I've ever met. And you can do whatever you want with your life.”

Dib stares at you for a long time, like he's trying to understand something. Like if he looks away from you, you're going to disappear and he's never going to see you again. "Y...You still want to be around me? Even if..." He wipes his nose with his sleeve. "Even if I'm....even if I'm just a clone?"

"You're not 'just' _anything,_ Dib. You're my best friend. And we'll always be best friends." You smile and put your hands on his shoulders, squeezing him reassuringly. "I will NEVER stop caring about you, no matter what. And...this? Honestly, I don't know exactly what's going to happen now. But I promise you, it's going to be okay. We can figure this out together."

He blinks, and there's a flicker of hope, of the old Dib, in his eyes. "T-together?"

You smile a little wider. "I'm not going anywhere, kiddo."

Dib smiles back weakly before he sniffles and staggers forward, throwing his arms around you in a big hug and burying his head in your stomach. But not before he manages to choke out one word. One single, life-changing word. It’s three letters long, and it’s directed specifically at you.

And the instant you hear it, your heart skips a beat.

Never, in your life, has anyone ever addressed you as their parent before.

And then it all becomes clear. Why Dib always looks up to you. Why you’re the first person he goes to when something good or bad happens. Why he came straight to you, in the middle of the night during a thunderstorm, at what has to be the lowest point of his life, just to talk to you. The level of trust he’s placed in you. How much you mean to him. You finally understand how he feels about you, how he sees you. And the thought of it breaks you completely and fills you with warmth at the same time.

Dib is crying again, but this time it seems to be doing him some good. You hold him close and stroke his head gently, and he nuzzles into you as you shush him quietly for a moment before you speak. "It's gonna be okay, Dib. I'm not going anywhere."

You close your eyes and let the tears you've been holding back finally fall.

"I've got your back."

\----------------------------

The storm outside is finally letting up.

You watch as the violent monsoon dwindles down to a gentle, if steady, rainfall. There's still thunder, but it's distant. The lightning isn't flashing as frequently as before. Storms used to scare you when you were a little kid. But now that you're older, you see the beauty in them. Listening to them rumble overhead is calming, and relaxing. It actually helps you sleep.

And you're not the only one who feels that way.

You turn to your right and look down, smiling in relief. Dib, now fast asleep and wearing an extra set of clothes he had left at your apartment before, lies beside you on the bed, snuggled up under the blankets and clinging to your side. He's breathing peacefully, and there's a calm, content smile at the corners of his lips. It's a far cry from the sobbing, broken-hearted mess he was only an hour ago, and you're grateful to the powers that be for him to be able to find any peace after the night he's had.

You frown as your mind wanders to where the red briefcase lies in the living room, stuffed under the coffee table and hidden from sight.

There's still one more loose end to tie up. You don't want to shatter this peace. And you don't want to put Dib through any more pain tonight. But like it or not, there's someone you still need to talk to.

_All fathers care for their sons._

You blink, wondering why that old quote suddenly rang through your head. But you shake it off and slowly get up, careful not to wake the little kid next to you. You replace your body with an especially fluffy pillow, and though Dib stirs a little, he simply rolls over and continues sleeping in the end. You silently make your way over to the kitchen and start fixing yourself a hot drink, dialing your cellphone as you do.

It only rings once before he answers.

"Hello?!" Profes-....._Membrane_ sounds panicked. He's never sounded more lost or out of sorts, and it's so weird to hear him say your name with such fear in his voice. "Is that you?!"

"Hey," you say coolly, as you pour your drink into your mug. "I'm glad I caught you."

"I-I'm very sorry, but I _can't_ talk right now, it's - " His voice fades in and out, and he sounds oddly breathless, like he's been running. "It's Dib, it's my son, he's - !"

"He's here."

There's a long pause broken only by the sound of you stirring your drink with a spoon. His voice is so quiet, you almost miss it. "....What?"

"Dib's here with me," you explain as you pour some hard, hard liquor into your mug. "He walked to my apartment. I don't know how he managed it, but he did. I just put him to bed thirty minutes ago. He's safe and sound." There's a slight edge in your voice when you speak again. "He's spending the night."

There is a long, long pause. Neither of you say anything, but neither of you have to. There's a chasm between the two of you now, and a whole different kind of storm brewing over the horizon. You can feel it. You know he does as well.

The other end of the line is full of static and rainfall and silent but powerful emotions. You take a sip of your drink and let the alcohol burn down your throat. It feels good. "How far away are you from my place right now?" you ask.

"...About ten minutes away by car," he answers. "I know it's very late but....can....can we meet? We...." He lets out a long, long sigh. "We should talk."

"......Yeah. Go ahead and come on over."

In your growing rage, you grip your mug so hard, it almost shatters in your hand. Before you hang up, you whisper one final sentence into the receiver.

"You've got a lot to answer for."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, y'all! Thank you for coming to check out my story! **This fanfiction was inspired by a wonderful piece of fanart by glossomer-arts on tumblr, this one right here:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> **here's the link again in case you missed it:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> **and here it is again:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> **and again:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> **one more time:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> seriously, this story wouldn't exist without this lovely piece of art so please give it a look and support the original artist!
> 
> Anyways, this is obviously written in a universe if the famous "Dib is Membrane's clone" theory was true. I've always wondered what would happen if Dib was a clone, and how he would react if he found out the truth. I can imagine it would be the kind of thing that just breaks a person completely. Add my own desire for Dib to have a solid parental figure in his life as well as my current thirst for Professor Membrane, and here it is. The end result.
> 
> This is sort of experimental writing - I don't usually share stuff this dramatic publically, and i'm still new to reader-insert fics, but it was a lot of fun and i hope you enjoyed it.
> 
> **A lot of songs inspired this, including:**
> 
> **Spanish Sahara, by the Foals:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBOpWY_B1vM  
(^^^one of the biggest inspirations for the general feel and flow of the chapter i might add!) 
> 
> **Black Flies, by Ben Howard:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wewmoql_sUo 
> 
> **Take Me Home, by Phil Collins (which i named this chapter after, because this song always gives me feels):** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDjqKg3pcOg
> 
> **Nobody, by Ghost:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxNAH6pWFfI
> 
> **Flaws, by Daughter:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSxfm88nZTM
> 
> **Mt Washington, by the Local Natives:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mN-CqIytN2U
> 
> **Obokuri-Eeumi, by Ikue Asazaki:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEQtkLNTmRs 
> 
> and finally, **Mom by through and through:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YH4dSwoZ-D0 
> 
> that last song is important. if the relationship between Reader and Dib was a sound, that song would be it. 
> 
> **by the way, in case anyone is curious, the quote "all fathers care for their sons" is spoken by Master Splinter, and it's from the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie from way back when. it's in this scene:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hciTSjAe73Y
> 
> **edit:** 09/14 and 09/15, cleaned up some typos, changed wording/streamlined wording in some areas and added a few more sentences here and there. also added this info section.
> 
> Please stay tuned for the second half of this story, and as always, thank you for reading!


	2. Tell Me Lies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys before we get to the story, I want to thank each and every one of you for supporting this story and my writing. Whether you've left me kudos, wonderfully kind comments, ACTUAL FANART or you just stopped by to give this a look-see, it all means so much to be and I'm happy that you enjoyed the first half of this story. Please enjoy the other half, and as always, thank you for reading!
> 
> And special thanks to **glossomer-arts, whose lovely work of fanart inspired this whole story:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> I will absolutely link spam this in the notes down below because y'all need to see and support her work.
> 
> Thank you. Now on to the story.

When it rains, it pours.

The storm has died down considerably, but that doesn't mean it isn't going strong. It drowns out everything, from the static on the radio to the visibility of the road through the windshield. The world outside of the car exists only as a mess of shadows and lights continuously bleeding into each other, beautiful shapeless colors dancing in an endless black void. The world at two AM doesn't even feel like the same planet anymore. As Membrane drives on, he ponders for a moment on how unfamiliar it's all become. He's lived in this city for years now, but the storm and the night have both warped it into something strange, something he doesn't quite recognize anymore.

After tonight, the whole world will be something he won't quite recognize anymore.

It doesn’t feel real. None of this feels real. Whether it’s from the lack of sleep, or the aftermath of all the fear and panic that engulfed him only moments ago, Membrane feels oddly disconnected from everything. He feels hollow. He feels numb.

The car rolls to a stop at a red light, and Membrane closes his eyes and lets out a long, weary sigh as he thinks back to earlier that night.

\---------------------------------------------

Unfortunately, a new project Membrane Labs had been working on was currently in a very delicate stage of its development, one that needed constant attention at all hours of the day. And that meant that he, as the leader of said project, had to stay late again to keep an eye on it. Membrane was a hard worker through and through, but he was also a father, and though he would have easily said yes to staying late in the past, it was getting harder and harder to do so now. After the..._intense hallucination_ he'd had a year prior, the scientist had decided to make his family a higher priority moving forward. He had made a promise to both of his children that he would be more present in both of their lives. He'd spend more time with them, take part in the activities they liked, attend Skool functions in person instead of through a hover screen, and that he'd be at home for dinner at least five days out of the week.

It was already Saturday night, and he'd still hadn't been able to sit down and eat with his children ONCE.

The thought had been enough to make him pause and flop over on the lab table in frustration.

It had been around ten o'clock at night. He was working by himself in a small secluded corner of the lab, right in the middle of tinkering with a particularly fussy piece of equipment. The wiring was complicated and delicate, and after peeling himself off of the table and returning to his task, he entered a slow and conscientious rhythm. Like building a ship in a bottle, it was deliberate, careful work, all a matter of putting the right pieces together in the right places....

Until his cellphone rang.

_"¡Ay, carajo!"_ In his surprise, Membrane had nearly jumped out of his seat and fumbled with the machinery until it inevitably fell out of his hands and broke apart on the floor. Slapping a hand to his forehead and wondering why he hadn't put his phone on vibrate like he usually did, Membrane summoned a cleaning robot and answered his personal home cellphone. It was another promise he had made to his kids - to always stop and answer every call from home, no matter how busy he was. "Hello?" he sighed.

The person on the other line did not answer at first. For a moment, there was just one long, unbroken silence. Membrane's brow furrowed in confusion as he waited for the other person to speak. "Uh...hello? Clembrane? Did you mute yourself again?"

".....When were you going to tell me?"

"Dib?" Membrane's eyebrows had flown up in surprise. "Is that you? Why are you still awake? I know astronomy's one of your favorite hobbies, son, but a growing boy needs a solid sleep schedule - "

"Don't call me that."

The sharp edge in Dib's voice was enough to make Membrane pause.

"I...uh...Son, is everything al - ?"

"I _said,_ don't. Call. Me. That."

"I don't...." Confused at the way this conversation was going, Membrane sat down on his stool again, trying to pick his words carefully. His son was upset about something, clearly...but what? "Dib, I'm sorry, but I don't understand. Is there....did something happen? Whatever it is, we can talk about it, and I can help you when I get home tomorrow."

"'Help me?' _Really?_ How?" Dib's voice was different than usual, low, dangerous, and utterly spiteful. And yet, something about it was somehow mechanical, full of malice yet devoid of soul. Never in his life had Membrane ever heard his son speak in that kind of voice before, and it set off every paternal alarm bell in his head. "Are you gonna brush me off again?" spat Dib. "Lie to me again? Gaslight me into thinking I'm crazy so I won't go looking for answers?" Dib snorted, his words dripping with venom. "I don't NEED your kind of 'help' anymore, _Membrane._ I never did."

"Dib, what on Ea - ? _What is this about?!"_ Membrane was steadily losing his patience at that point, both from the growing worry in his stomach and his personal circumstances. He'd been working for a week straight with zero breaks and only four hours of solid sleep per night, and all of that, plus the stress of trying to meet deadlines and not being home enough, had left him stretched far too thin for conversations like these. "Young man, I'm going to have to ask you to _watch your tone._ If you have a problem, then you're going to have to work with me here and communicate!" He began drumming his fingers on the lab table nervously, his leg wiggling in irritation. "Are you still upset about the school project?" He sighed, forcing down the twinge of guilt that suddenly rang through his gut. "I know you weren't happy with me when we last talked about it, but please - "

_"Talked_ about it?" Dib's voice was incredulous, going up an octave in his anger. "We never _talked_ about it! I asked you for answers, f-for something, ANYTHING, a picture, a-a story, a photograph, and - ! And you just _cut me off_ and told me there was nothing to discuss!"

"...There IS nothing to discuss."

"You're _lying._"

"Son, I PROMISE you, I am NOT lying. There's nothing to say about your mother - "

"NO! Don't you DARE give me that - !"

"DIB, for the last time, there is nothing to say about your mother!"

Membrane slammed his fist on the table, trying to ignore the way his spine was tightening with anxiety. "I know you had your hopes up that there was more to her than you thought! But as I've said before, she was NOT a cryptid, or a witch, or a Soviet Spy, or a demigoddess, or the highborn leader of an alien rebellion, or - or any of the other theories you've come up with this past week!" The scientist leaned on the table, closing his eyes in exasperation. "Son, please, just...abandon these fantasies already."

There was a beat of silence, and Dib didn't speak.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Membrane sighed and spoke again. "Dib, I don't want to argue. I understand that you're disappointed, and maybe even frustrated. But I can tell something else is bothering you. I don't know what went wrong, but _this_..." He shook his head. "This has to stop."

".....Then maybe you should have made me better."

Membrane's eyes flew open. Somewhere overhead, a crack of thunder rang out through the night sky.

"....What...did you just say?" he stuttered.

"You heard me," murmured Dib.

There was a long pause, thick and tense. Membrane was half a city away from his son, but as the seconds ticked on, the distance between them only grew.

"I found the briefcase, _Dad,"_ said Dib quietly. "I know everything. Were you ever going to tell me about who I am? Were you ever going to tell me about _what_ I am? Or were you just going to hide it forever so you didn't have to admit that I'm your biggest mistake?" He coughed out a laugh, but there was no humor in it. "Yeah. Something like that must be hard for the world's smartest man to say out loud."

Those words were like daggers to Membrane's heart. "Y-you're not - "

"I mean, that's the only reason I'm here, right?!" interrupted Dib, his breathing becoming shallow and panicked. "I was s-supposed to take over Membrane Labs when you die, right?! I was supposed to be a perfect copy of you, doing science and making breakthroughs and everything else you've been trying to get me to do all my life! That's literally the only reason I'm alive, but I'm failing at it every day, because something went wrong and you didn't make me right and I'm _you_ but also _not you,_ not in the way that matters! And..and now...!"

Dib fell silent, and over the faint static, Membrane could hear his son sniffle and choke back tears.

"Is that why you like Gaz more than me?" Dib asked in a broken voice. "Because I'm just an experiment that didn't go right? Because I'm not actually human?"

Membrane shook his head, suddenly very cold. _"Dib...."_

"R-remember the times when I tried to talk to you, and you forgot who I was? Was that because you were too busy doing science to remember my name? Or was it because I was never really supposed to have one of my own?!"

"S-son - !"

But that was the wrong thing to say.

"STOP CALLING ME THAT!" screamed Dib. "I'm not your son! And you're not my Dad!" His voice had grown bitter and tired. For a moment, he no longer sounded like a child. "You can drop the act now, Professor Membrane! You don't have to pretend that I matter to you anymore!"

"Dib..." On the other side of the line, Membrane's mind raced as his panic began to rise. "Dib, wait, listen to me - !"

"Why should I when all you've ever done is lie, and _lie,_ and _lie some more?!_ I'm such an idiot! Why did I waste so much of my time trying to make you proud of me?! Why did I EVER let myself believe that you care?!"

"Dib, wait, please!" The scientist's vision was swimming before him, and he stumbled over himself as he tried to stay calm. "I'm on my way out the door, and you and I can talk about this the second I get home!"

There was no reply. Just the faint sound of Dib's breathing.

"Dib?!" Membrane's voice cracked in desperation. _"DIB?!"_

Finally, in a hollow, quiet voice, Dib murmured one last thing into the receiver.

"...This isn't my home."

Then the line went dead, and the world fell out from under Membrane's feet.

\--------------------------------------

A car honks behind him and brings him back to reality. Membrane's eyes snap open and catch sight of the green light. Cricking his neck in irritation, he steps on the gas and continues on.

This will be the first time he’s visited you at your home. He’s never been to your apartment before - he's never had a reason to go - but he knows exactly where it is and how to get there. 

When he got home earlier that night and saw the hole left behind in the back yard, he had immediately searched the house for his son, desperate to find him before the situation got worse. Everything in Dib's bedroom had been in complete disarray. There were posters torn off of the walls and pieces of furniture knocked over. His son's beloved telescope had been smashed to pieces on the floor. The alien hunting briefcase that he clung to like a security blanket had been trampled on carelessly.

All of the family photos had been ripped up into shreds.

In the mess, he had found Dib's cellphone, something Dib NEVER left the house without, and the scientist has been carrying it around the entire night. He's had it with him as he's called the police and every one of his contacts to put out a search for his son. He's had it with him as he's talked Clembrane and Foodio out of their hysteria and convinced them to stay at the house in case Dib came back. He's had it with him as he's driven around the city, stopping at every single one of Dib's favorite hangouts and trying to ignore his own dark, fearful thoughts. Thoughts like how easy it would be for someone to kidnap a child in the darkness of night. Thoughts like how easy it would be for the floodwaters to wash away his son without leaving behind any trace.

It's the middle of the night and his son ran away from home during the worst storm of the year.

There's a hill on the edge of town called the Overlook, aptly named because if one were to climb all the way to the top, they could see the entire city from there. It's a famous spot for tourists, hikers, photographers and teenagers on dates. And, above all else, it's the best place to stargaze in town.

When Dib was little, he was afraid of the dark. There was a time when his son would constantly have nightmares about things that hid in the shadows and go into complete hysterics whenever anyone would turn off the lights. No matter how Membrane tried to convince him that there was nothing to be afraid of, his son would not let go of his fear of the dark. It was so, so frustrating to see Dib be consumed with a phobia that was both irrational and impractical, but he was a child, and children saw the world differently. Where adults saw a lamppost, children saw a giant. Where Membrane saw a jacket hanging on a chair, Dib saw a monster creeping closer to his bed. It wasn't as if he could just convince his son that he had nothing to fear. It was not that simple. For a while, Membrane had truly struggled to find a way to help Dib lose his fear of the dark.

And then he realized, if he couldn't take away Dib's reasons to fear the darkness, then maybe he could give him a reason to love it.

So one night, he cancelled all of his plans, sent his employees home early, and took Dib on a long drive out to the Overlook to stargaze. It was the first time Dib had ever used a telescope. From the moment he hands touched it, he fell in love with the night sky, his eyes wide with wonder as he explored the cosmos. Dib's elation was infectious and heartwarming, and to this day, Membrane will never forget his son's face when he looked up and saw Saturn's rings for the very first time. For the rest of the night, he stood there with his son, teaching him about constellations and nebulas and everything else he knew about outer space.

And from that moment on, Dib was never scared of the dark again.

It was there, on that hill, years later, when Membrane would be frantically running through the wet grass, using the flashlight function in his arms to illuminate his path as he desperately searched for his runaway child.

And it was there on that hill where he finally, _finally,_ got the most important phone call in his life.

"Hello?!" His lungs were on fire and his body was aching with exhaustion. Forcing himself to calm down, the scientist tried to steady his breathing so he could speak to you. He saw your number on the caller I.D. and he remembered that he had given you his personal phone line ages ago in case of emergency. This was the first time you'd ever used it. Still breathless, he had said your name, confused beyond belief. "Is that you?!"

"Hey. I'm glad I caught you."

Your voice was like the eye in the center of a hurricane. It was so serene and casual, listening to it actually grounded him a little from the terror that was coursing through his body. It cleared his head and brought him back to center, but he couldn't stop to talk, not when his son was out there somewhere, scared and alone. "I-I'm very sorry," he had babbled, too frazzled to hide his fear, "But I _can't_ talk right now, it's - " Speaking was painful. There was a lump in his throat, and it was hard to piece together anything coherent when his mind was flooded with dark, intrusive thoughts. "It's Dib, it's my son, he's - !"

"He's here."

Those words were spoken softly, but when he heard them, the ambient noises of the storm faded away into silence. Time seemed to freeze as Membrane had paused in mid-step, and for a moment, the entire world held its breath. "....What?"

"Dib's here with me."

Four words had never held so much power over him before. Without realizing it, he had fallen to his knees, overwhelmed by the relief flooding through his body. As you continued to speak, he had clung to the grass, closing his eyes and letting himself breathe for what felt like the first time that night. "He walked to my apartment," you had said, your voice distant. "I don't know how he managed it, but he did. I just put him to bed thirty minutes ago. He's safe and sound." You paused. "He's spending the night."

His eyes snapped open at the way you spoke that last sentence.

You knew.

There was a long stretch of silence between the two of you. Inside his heart, a thousand and one emotions buzzed around like a swarm of insects, and yet somehow, his head felt empty and light. On the other side of the line, he could hear you drink something before you spoke again. "How far away are you from my place right now?"

It had taken him a second for the cogs inside of his head to start moving again, but the words came out eventually."...About ten minutes away by car." Slowly, he picked himself up off of the grass. This entire night had been like being tossed into a stormy sea, and he had held onto his phone like it was the one thing keeping him from drowning. "I know it's very late but....can....can we meet? We...." The scientist trailed off, and took a long deep breath in and out to steady himself before continuing. "We should talk."

"......Yeah. Go ahead and come on over. You've got a lot to answer for."

Then you hung up, and the conversation was over.

The next few moments were a blur. He had let himself go on autopilot, calling off the search for his son on his communicator and sending an update to Clembrane and Foodio about the situation. As he made his way back to the car, he pulled out his son's cellphone, typed in the passcode, and found what he was looking for.

Your address was right where he expected it to be, listed under Dib's favorite contacts. Along with your phone number, his son also had your birthday information, your email address, your work schedule, and even a special ringtone assigned to you which he could only guess was a song you were fond of. And when he exited back to the main screen, he saw that Dib even had a photo of the two of you set as his wallpaper. In the photo, you're both smiling at the camera as his son takes a selfie. It's night, and the two of you are illuminated by the greenish-yellow glow of a taco truck he doesn't recognize. Dib's smile is big and wide, his eyes lit up with joy and his face smeared with nacho cheese, and you're in the middle of biting into a burrito as you flash a peace sign at the camera and wink. Membrane didn't know the particular story behind this photo, or why Dib would commemorate it as his wallpaper, but as a father, he knew that this moment, whatever it was, had been something very special to his son.

Membrane's grip tightens on the steering wheel as he comes back to the present. The glow of the dashboard glints off of his prosthetics, and as he tries to take deep calming breaths, he bites his lip and curses himself for his own stupidity and shortsightedness. How did he not realize it sooner? _Of course_ he would have gone straight to you. You’re the most important person in his life.

That thought stings more than he expected it to, and the moment he realizes it, he forces down the undercurrent of jealousy that’s starting to bubble up to the surface. You’re the most important person in his son’s life, and he has to accept that. Membrane’s always been the type to hold grudges - he’s slow to forgive and NEVER forgets - but even he’s not so petty as to harbor any bad feelings towards you for….for just being yourself.

That’s the only crime you’re guilty of. Being yourself. It wasn’t your fault Dib connected to you on a level that the scientist himself could not. It wasn't your fault that the two of you can spend hours together in conversation and never, ever run out of things to talk about. All you've ever done is be the kind, thoughtful person you naturally are, the exact kind of person a lonely, eccentric boy like Dib needs in his life. Membrane knows, even as envy creeps over his shoulder and threatens to strangle his heart at the mere thought of it, that you've earned the right to be Dib's favorite person in the world. Dib likes you. Dib loves you.

And, if the scientist was being perfectly honest with himself, his son was...not exactly _alone_ in that sentiment.

_"You've got a lot to answer for."_

From behind his goggles, Membrane's tired eyes move to the clock on the dashboard. It takes ten minutes to drive from the Overlook to your apartment. According to the clock, only three have passed since he started driving.

There's a selfish, cowardly part of him that wishes time could just freeze indefinitely. The moment this car ride stops, everything between the two of you will change forever.

_No. No that's stupid_, he thinks to himself. _Everything already HAS changed forever._

As he's thinking this, he comes to another red light and grabs Dib's cellphone from off of the seat next to him, gazing down at his son's wallpaper selfie with a pained expression on his face. Dib looks so happy, like he's on top of the world and there's nothing that could ever bring him down. His smile is different than usual. It's hard for his father to pin down exactly why. He's always been a lot more carefree than Gaz, but even so, Dib doesn't smile like that very often.

After tonight, he might never smile like that again.

Wishes aren't very scientific. They're baseless, formless desires with no real impact or consequence on reality. But if they existed, if he was allowed to make one with absolutely no setbacks, then Membrane would wish that everything could go back to the way it was before tonight.

——————--------------------

It's just past two in the morning when he finally gets to your apartment complex. Membrane parks the car and steps out, using the hard light technology in his arm to summon a holo-shield for an umbrella. For a moment, he looks around, trying to orient himself and remember exactly which apartment building you live in - 

But there's no need to. You're already there, waiting for him in your pajamas under the stone archway that leads to the courtyard, leaning against the brick with your arms crossed. As soon as he notices you, you start walking towards him, ignoring the rain completely.

He starts jogging over to you, already calling out your name, but as your silhouette comes closer and closer, he slows down as he realizes that something is off. You're not walking the way you usually do. Your body language is different. Confident. Purposeful. It reminds him of a nature documentary he once saw, specifically a scene where a lion crept up to its prey before suddenly leaping forward and going in for the kill.

The moment he makes that comparison, you're right there in front of him.

He opens his mouth but you hold up a hand to silence whatever it is he was about to say. The expression on your face is one he's never seen you make before, intense and powerful, but ultimately unreadable. You suck in a shaky breath and let it out slowly, and when you speak, there's a slight strain in your voice. "I'm gonna lose my temper now," you say quietly.

He blinks, not sure how to respond. “….Wh-wha - ?"

But before he can finish that sentence, you're already lunging at him.

The holo-shield disappears and he manages to call out about half your name before he's dodging a kick to the head. Before he can realize what's happening, you have him on the defensive as you unleash a barrage of punches that he somehow manages to avoid completely. “What?! What are you - ! Stop!”

"What were you thinking?!" Like water breaking through a dam, your anger comes out in full force as you screech into his face. "What! Were! You! _THINKING?!"_

His protests fall on deaf ears as you ignore him. Membrane is much taller and heavier than you, but you're here for a fight and he's not, and that alone is enough for you to overwhelm him. You don't give him any time to strategize or to talk, and all he can do is react and move out of your way. As you attack him, he thinks back to when he first found out you were friends with his son. At the time, you were a complete stranger, and the thought of his child spending most of his time with a random adult - especially one who believed in the paranormal - rubbed him the wrong way. So, he did the responsible thing, and ran a complete background check with appropriated government technology like any other normal father would. In his research, he found rumors of who you were growing up, stories about your ferocity and unrivaled aggression in a fight. These rumors were more than a little disconcerting, and, unsatisfied with his conclusions through research, he decided to do some field work and spend more time with you in person.

For months he observed you during outings with his family, and here he concluded that those rumors were either incorrect or severely outdated. You weren't some lowlife thug picking fights at every opportunity. As he watched you, he learned that you were quite friendly. You were well-adjusted, open, a wonderful conversationalist, an excellent listener, and above all else, surprisingly relatable. There were even moments where he could only accurately describe you as...endearing. Someone like you, sending people to the hospital? It couldn't be true. It had to be a lie.

Clearly, he was wrong.

After a minute or two of evading your wrath, Membrane realizes that you're not going to let up anytime soon. He doesn't want to do it, he really doesn't, not to you and not after what's happened tonight....but in the end, he starts fighting back. In your fury, you are _terrifying,_ but according to the background check, you've never actually received any formal training. If he had to make a hypothesis, you've just been picking up what you know from fights in the street. It's an intense and inventive approach, but in the end, you're all strength and zero skill, and he's had more than enough self-defense classes to take you down. Within moments, he's disarmed you, and you find yourself trapped in a stalemate.

The two of you are grappling each other. You’re trying to overtake him, but he’s not having any of it. Membrane doesn't push you back or try to overtake you himself, but with his size, his height advantage, and the strength in his prosthetics, there's no way you're going to make him budge anytime soon. He’s gripping you just tightly enough so you can’t get loose, and you can’t attack him from below because you’ll lose your footing the second you do. All you can do is wait for him to let you go, and he's not letting you go until you calm down. Gritting your teeth in frustration, you let out a long string of curses so obscene and crass that he quirks one eyebrow in fascination at your creativity. You catch sight of his mechanical limbs and realize for the first time that he’s not wearing his usual black rubber gloves. After a second or two, you look up to meet his eyes and hiss out a challenge to him. It takes him off guard - so much so, in fact, that he leans forward to make sure he heard you correctly over the rain. _"What?"_

"_Use_ them," you repeat. "Do it." Your grip on his hands tighten, and your eyes glint dangerously as you lean forward and bare your teeth. "See what happens."

"You..." His stomach starts to sink when he realizes what you're referring to. Not so long ago, he had invited you over for tea, and over the course of an hour the two of you got to know each other better. During this hour, he told you about his prosthetics. He told you how he ended up with them, what life was like after his accident, and all of the modifications he's made to them over the years. The energy beams. The hard light weapondry system. The tasers. The strength he's carefully calibrated in them, and what it's capable of at maximum power. Any one of these features could roast you alive or slice you apart or crush your bones to a paste with little issue. Are you seriously asking him to use them on you?

The thought actually, physically hurts him.

He murmurs your name in disbelief. "I...I can't do that. I won't....Y-you _KNOW_ what they could - "

**"Shut up!"**

The words die in his throat. Your voice has taken on a feral growl, and yet it is still chillingly calm as you speak. "I'm not an idiot, _Membrane._ I _know_ what they can do to me. I know, and I don't care. Come on. Use them. Give me a reason to defend myself." Your eyes burn with cold, fierce anger as you challenge him. In that moment, you _are_ a storm. _"Give me a reason to rip your throat out."_

He stiffens and doesn't respond.

There's a long, tense pause as the two of you stare at each other. Your nostrils flare as your breaths come out ragged and uneven, and you're literally shaking with the force of all your violent emotions. In stark contrast, he's perfectly still and perfectly quiet. Finally, after what feels like hours, he steadies himself and speaks. "....I came here to talk."

He says those words as quietly and calmly as he can, but they still ignite your ire, and you snarl and try to kick him. Losing his patience, he uses the force of your kick to whirl you around and disorient you a little before releasing you. "I came here to _talk."_ he repeats.

You steady yourself before looking back over your shoulder at him. "Let's get one thing straight, Tin Man: you don't get to talk right now!"

Without warning, you rush up to him and pull him down by the collar to your eye level with surprising strength. Your faces are now only a few inches away from each other. He can smell the faint whiff of alcohol on your breath, and somehow it only adds to the dangerous aura that surrounds you. "Do you know what it did to him when he found out?! Do you know what it was like to watch him cry like that?! To see him _break_ like that?! Do you know what it's like to stand there and listen to a _thirteen-year-old_ tell you that he's not a real person?!" You pull him even closer, and he can see his own reflection in your eyes as you rant. "You can't imagine how much this hurt him! He digs up a box in the backyard thinking it's full of family photos, and instead he opens it up and finds his own _blueprints?!_ Do you - ?!" You pause and make a choking noise. Without warning, you let him go suddenly, clamping your hands around your mouth and turning away from him.

It takes him a moment to realize that you're trying not to vomit.

You swallow the bile in the back of your throat, desperately trying to get ahold of yourself. The stress of it all has finally gotten to you, but you can't break down, not now, and not in front of HIM. When your nausea finally passes and you regain your breath, you turn back to face him and continue. "Do you have any idea how sick this is?! How unfair it is for him to have to put up with any of this garbage?!" You cover your face with your hands, but not before he catches sight of the fresh tears in your eyes. "_He's just a little boy!_ Just a little kid who wanted to learn about a mom he's never known. About a mom that doesn't exist." You look up at him again with such contempt that it's almost enough to make him take a step back. "I will NEVER forgive you for this, Membrane! Never, for as long as I live! Do you hear me?!"

"Of course I can hear you," he responds coolly. "You're screaming right in my face."

"YOU SON OF A - !"

You rush at him again but he grabs you by the wrists with one hand and holds you a few feet above ground a safe distance away from him. "That's _enough."_

"Put me down!" You hiss and scream at him like a feral cat, but it's no use. You're left dangling helplessly, trying to wiggle loose. "Put me DOWN, you arrogant bastard!"

"I would truly appreciate it if you calmed down right now," he says tonelessly, watching you struggle with a deadpan expression.

_"Go to Hell!"_

He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose, refusing to let your words hurt him any more than they already have. "I understand why you're upset, but I didn't come here to argue with you. I came here to see my son." Dib's face flickers across his mind, and Membrane has to force his anxiety and guilt down before continuing. "Now if you could please stop wasting my time and tell me how my child is doing - "

_"I DON'T KNOW!"_

He pauses and looks back at you again.

You're still glaring at him, but there's something underneath the fury and aggression that wasn't there before. "He's sleeping!" you tell him sharply. "When he got to my place, he was exhausted! He was tired, and....a-and soaking wet....and scared." The fierce expression on your face is evaporating away into something raw and vulnerable. "He was really..._really_ scared."

Membrane's eyebrows knit together as he listens to you, but you don't notice. Your eyes are cast downward as you recount the events that took place only an hour or so ago. "I've never seen Dib that upset about anything before," you confess. "It was awful, you have no _idea._ But I calmed him down. I don't know how, but I did. We cried it out together for a little bit, I got him a new change of clothes and some hot chocolate, and then I put him to bed. He was out before his head even hit the pillow. Dib is..._fine._ F-for now, at least. But I don't..." A flicker of worry crosses over your features. "I-I don't know if he'll be okay tomorrow, or the day after, or ever again. He knows everything, Membrane. Everything." You swallow, and close your eyes as your tears fall freely. "He's just a kid. How is he supposed to live with this? How am I supposed to help him get through this? How could you - ?"

You look back up at him, and he blinks in surprise at the heartbroken and betrayed expression in your eyes. "...How _could_ you?" you whisper.

Slowly, gently, Membrane lowers you onto the ground and releases his hold on you. You're sobbing openly now, and the sight makes him very uncomfortable in a lot of ways. It's a fact that almost no one knows about him, but he can't cry. He's more than capable of experiencing grief, fury, and other extreme emotions, but ever since he was little, the scientist has never been able to actually, physically cry. Because of that, he's never known quite what to do when other people cry, and more often than not he always ends up standing awkwardly to the side, waiting for the tears to pass.

It's different when you're crying, though. It's somehow worse in every single way, especially since he's the reason you're so upset.

He feels like he has to do something, but he's not entirely sure what. He doesn't think he has the right to put his hand on your shoulder right now, and he's afraid he'll set you off again if he offers you a hug. The rain is still falling, and he doesn't like the way you're getting so wet, especially since you're barefoot. You'll end up sick at this rate. He doesn't want anyone else to suffer on his behalf. So, wordlessly, he summons the holo-shield again and holds it over the both of you to protect you from the water.

You don't seem to notice; you're still too busy crying. "You didn't think, did you?!" you sob as you wipe the tears away with the back of your wrist. "You're supposed to be the most brilliant mind of our generation, but you didn't stop to think about how _he_ would feel if he found out! You never stopped to consider that maybe you were creating an actual person who wanted to live their lives however THEY wanted!"

"No, I didn't."

That response startles you.

He's still looking down at you with a perfect poker face, but there's no hiding the weariness in his voice. Membrane runs a hand through his hair and glances off to the side, apparently unable to meet your eyes. "You're right. I didn't take into account any of those things when I started the project. I never felt the need to because...those issues were never supposed to even come up. The whole point of the project was to create a perfect clone of _myself._"

"I..." You shake your head. "I don't understand. Isn't he...isn't Dib a clone of yourself?"

"He's...a clone, yes, but he's not what I had intended to create." Membrane shifts uncomfortably and rubs the back of his neck. "Most other clones are, as you would say, 'their own person.' They have to age at the same rate as the original, they are capable of having a completely different personality from the original, and they can even have different phenotypes and wind up with a completely different hair color or eye color than they were supposed to. Some can even be born with deformities or other health problems that their parent never had. A clone can look identical to who or what it was created from, but more often than not, that's where the similarities end. That isn't what I was trying to do. I was trying to create the _perfect_ clone of myself, one that was _me_ inside and out. It wasn't supposed to have a mind of its own - all of my memories would be transferred over to it upon my death. The only real difference was that it was supposed to be in its early twenties. The prime of its life. My life."

You're watching him intently, trying to process what you've just heard. Membrane lets out a deep breath and turns back to you, dejected. "Do you really think I'm the type of person to create another life just so I can take away its freedom and future?" He shakes his head and murmurs your name in a heartbroken voice. "I NEVER wanted to do that. That's wrong, in every sense of the word. I just..." He shakes his head."All I wanted was a way to be able to keep going when my time ran out. Look around you. This world is an utter MESS. I've done whatever I can to improve it, and yet it is still an _utter mess._ When I die, there's a high chance that everything I've worked for is going to fall apart, and it'll be like I never even existed." He holds a hand to his forehead, and covers his eyes. "_Yes,_ I cloned myself so I could create another body to use when this one met its expiration date. And maybe it was selfish, and even a little..._vain_ to try to cheat death like that. Maybe I shouldn't have ever even attempted it, but...I had my reasons."

He looks back at you, his body language resolute. "I had my reasons to do it. I don't regret my actions, and I'm not sorry for what I tried to accomplish. The only thing I regret is..." He takes a deep breath in and out to steady himself. "The only thing I'm sorry for is that Dib had to find the truth." There's a slight darkness to his tone that most people wouldn't catch. "There's a reason I never told him about the project. I never wanted him to feel like any less of a person because of it."

You're not exactly sure what to feel after what you've just heard. Relief? Disgust? Contempt? Discomfort? You feel completely out of your depth right now, and you step closer as you try to understand. "So you....you were just trying to make an empty shell? Something you could just...download your personality into?"

"....That was the plan, yes," he murmurs softly. "But, in the end....it just didn't happen. The project itself was technically a failure. Instead of creating a clone in its twenties with no 'soul' to speak of, we were only able to successfully create one in its infancy. There was no way to speed up the aging process, and leaving it in the tank would not be good for its body in the long run. We also couldn't transfer my memories or personality to it, not at that age - its brain was far too young to be able to handle something like that. So in the end, I took it home with me. I decided to raise it from scratch in hopes of filling it with a love and passion for science. That was..." He pauses. "That was the plan, anyways."

"What changed?"

"...Hmm." There's a pause, and Membrane looks down in thought. Then, for the first time since you've met him, he pushes up his goggles and looks you right in the eye. "That's a good question."

His eyes are brown, just like his children's. But with how sharp and intense they are, they make him look more like Gaz than Dib. The only difference is that he has thicker eyebrows. There are dark, deep circles from years of shifting sleep schedules and all-nighters, and faint tan lines left behind by the goggles he almost never takes off. You freeze in place when you see them, mouth falling open slightly in shock.

He seems faintly amused by your reaction. It's enough to make him chuckle nervously before gazing off to the side and speaking again. "Uh....well....how do I say this? I...hmm. I don't know." He shakes his head. "I don't really know when it started, but at some point, he just became more than a project. I stopped using the word "it". I found a name I liked and started using it for him. And after a while...I made my decision. I called off the project, collected all of the notes and documents from our research and hid them in a secret vault in my backyard. I decided that from that moment on, I would be Dib's father, and that I would care for him as if he were any other child. I still tried, on principle, to emphasize the importance of legitimate science. Truth be told, there's a part of me that still hopes he goes down that road. Uh - !" He throws his hands up in surrender at your sharp expression. "B-by his own choice, of course! But in the end, I could see that he wasn't a blank slate I could work with. He was...a child. My child. And even if Dib doesn't consider me his father anymore - "

Your eyebrows fly up at those words. He stutters a little bit, wondering why that came out of his mouth, and he takes a moment to collect himself and swallow back the pain. "...No matter what happens, no matter what he was supposed to be, Dib is my son. He will ALWAYS be my son. Always."

The rain continues to fall as you stand underneath the soft blue glow of the holo-shield. The fury that consumed you earlier is gone, and your expression is thoughtful as you see the man before you in a whole new light. Membrane has...a _lot_ going on. There are far more sides to him than you previously thought, and you're not entirely sure if you accept, or even _trust,_ some of them.

You're not sure if you can forgive him for what this has done to Dib.

But, finally, you make a choice. You take a deep breath, shake your head, and step a little bit closer to him. He watches you warily. He's expecting more violence. More screaming. But instead, to his immense surprise, you reach down for his free hand and hold it in both of yours. "...I believe you," you whisper, squeezing his prosthetic lightly. "This whole cloning thing you're telling me about is....it's kind of gross. And I don't think it's right. I don't think I _should_ have to think it's right. Especially with the damage it's done to your son. Everything about this is fucked six ways to Sunday, and...and I HATE it. But...you're telling the truth." You hold his hand tighter and gaze at your reflection in the smooth metal. "I can feel it."

Membrane stares down at your hands, watching the way you're lightly running your fingers over the machinery. You're suddenly so gentle. You're suddenly so _close._ He can see the raindrops in your hair and count every last one of your eyelashes. It makes him a little dizzy. It makes it hard to figure out what to say next. "D-did you always have this much of a potty mouth?" he hears himself stutter awkwardly.

"Up yours," you reply. "But come on, it's not like I'm wrong." You run a hand over your face and groan loudly. "This is a HOT MESS, Membrane. Even if no one was supposed to get hurt from it, it's still just a complete train wreck. I wish..." You think back to when you held Dib in your arms as he cried, and you think about the honest affection Membrane has for him. "I wish things didn't have to be this complicated."

"Well then," Membrane sighs, quirking a sad smile from behind his collar, "I guess we finally found some common ground."

You nod and bite your lip, thinking for a minute before you look back up at him. "But there's still one more thing I don't understand."

"And what is that?"

"If you never wanted Dib to know the truth, then why didn't you just destroy all the files? If you knew that they were a risk, why would you....keep....?"

You trail off, realization dawning on your face. He stares back, his face unreadable.

".....I don't believe it," you finally whisper. "You didn't want to get rid of them because...you still planned on continuing the project."

There's no point in lying anymore. Lies are what got him to this point. Membrane takes in a slow, deep breath and lets it all out before he answers. "...Eventually, yes."

For a minute, the only thing that can be heard is the storm overhead. He's watching and waiting for your response in the tense silence, but you don't move or speak, not for a good long time. Then, finally, you step close, closer than you've ever been to him before, and to his utter shock, you reach up and start to unbutton his collar.

"U-uh - !" He stutters out your name questioningly, panicking a little at your close proximity. "W-what are you - ?"

You ignore him and continue, lightly brushing his hand aside when he half-heartedly tries to stop you. Finally, you finish, and as you place both of your hands on his cheeks and gaze up at him, you get a good long look at his face for the first time.

His jawline is much more confident and defined, and there are some striking angles to his face that Dib's baby fat still won't show for a few more years, but as to be expected, Membrane looks _exactly_ like his son. The only differences you see are his greying temples, the lines under his eyes from years of hard science, and discolored splotches on the lower left side of his face, starting from under his jaw and moving all the way across his nose in an erratic pattern. There's even a small patch on the bottom of his left ear, and as your eyes trail downward and notice how they stretch on under his lab coat, you start to think there might be some on his chest as well. You meditate on the strange whitish-pink marks for a moment, slowly realizing that they're scars left behind by a chemical burn, probably from an experiment gone wrong. When you step back and take everything in - his nose, his five o'clock shadow, his eyebrows, his somewhat unkempt hair - your first initial thought is that Membrane is fairly handsome.

Your second thought is that Membrane looks far too tired for someone his age.

He's gawking down at you, burning pink under your touch, and when you absentmindedly tuck a stray curl of hair behind his ear, he swallows thickly in response. His eyes widen and his pupils begin to dilate as you step closer, bring his face down only inches away from yours....

And headbutt him. _HARD._

"AAH!" The holo-shield flickers out of existence as he stumbles backwards and falls flat on his butt. "Ow!"

You watch him, unamused, crossing your arms and narrowing your eyes in disapproval. "You're a real piece of work, you know that, Chief?"

"OW!" he responds, trying to shake off the pain as he rubs his forehead. His skull is ringing, and he looks up at you, betrayed. _"WHY?!"_

"Because you're an IDIOT, _that's why!"_ You let out a loud, frustrated noise as you facepalm. "I can't believe you're still planning on going through with it! Do you realize how STUPID you are?! None of us had to go through any of this! This could have all been avoided if you had just let go of your hubris and burned all of the evidence YEARS ago!"

"But I NEEDED it!" he says as he stands up. "I don't have everything worked out yet, but once I figure out how to make it happen, I'm going to need those notes!"

"No, you don't!" You stomp angrily and walk back up to him, on the warpath once again. "Why make a clone?! Why go to all that trouble when you've already got so much to work with?! There are hundreds of other scientists who help you in the lab each and every day! Why can't THEY just take over for you when you pass on?! You hired them on for a reason! Aren't they capable enough?! Aren't they talented enough?!"

"Y-yes! They are!" he admits, still a little frazzled from the way you nearly cracked his head open. "But they....but they'll never - !"

"They'll never be as good as you?"

His eyebrows fly up and his cheeks turn pink in embarrassment. You scoff at his reaction and roll your eyes. "Tch. Called it." You pinch the bridge of your nose in irritation and close your eyes. "'You and your goddamn pride. I'm warning you right now, Chief, you better quit while you're ahead." You look up and glare at him. "I love you, I really do, but _you'd better not_ go through with it. Don't even THINK about it. Do you hear me? I've got some knuckledusters on standby and I am NOT afraid to use them."

"I - " He grows rigid, and straightens up a little when he realizes what you've just said. "You...you love me?"

"Stay on topic," you shoot back, snapping your fingers at him. "Listen up, because I'm only going to say this once. I should ONLY have to say this once! Are you listening?"

He stares at you surprised, and you narrow your eyes dangerously. "Are you listening, yes or no?!"

"I...yes." He nods. "Yes, I'm listening."

"Good." You let out a breath, and your body languages softens. Just a bit. "I get that you care. And I get that you're really, REALLY good at what you do. There's a reason why you're a world famous scientist, and I'm not trying to dismiss any of that. And I can see why that would weigh so heavy on you and why it would be scary to think about dying and leaving behind some unfinished business. You feel responsible for the world. You feel like there's more you could do. But..._come on!_ No man is an island! Let other people take up the job! Let _them_ help make the world a better place!" Your eyes narrow into slits. "It's not all about you, you know!"

"I _know!_ I - !....I...."

The scientist stands in silence for a moment, letting your words sink in before he finally sighs wearily and collects himself, deflating in defeat. "....I know. You're...right. You're absolutely right. About...about everything."

Membrane steps forward and puts his hands on your shoulders. He looks and sounds more human than you've ever seen him before in your life, and you watch him in surprise as he looks you right in the eyes.

"I'm sorry," he whispers.

You let out a deep breath. "I'm not the one you should be apologizing to."

He cringes at your words, but he doesn't deny them either. For a moment, he looks lost. Then he closes his eyes. "Why did I let this happen?" he murmurs. "Why - why did I even get myself into this mess?"

"...For science?"

Those words catch him off guard and his eyes snap open in revelation. Then he coughs out a hollow laugh, and a small, bitter smile forms at the corners of his lips. When he speaks again, there are hints of self-loathing at the edges of his voice. "I really do have a one-track mind, don't I?"

You reach up to touch his cheek, your eyes sad. "Like father, like son."

There's silence again, but this time, it's peaceful. The two of you are now completely soaked as you stand together in the rain, but neither of you seem to care. You gaze up at him, finally noticing the redness in his eyes, and the way he sways back and forth ever so slightly. He leans into your touch and lets his eyes close, all but sagging with exhaustion as he reaches up and puts his hand over yours.

He's arrogant, and he's stubborn, and just a little bit crazy, to boot. His morals are questionable, his pride undeniable, and he's done things you can't ever really forgive or sympathize with. He's a narcissist. He's a fool. His ambition may one day kill him.

....But still.

You love him.

You reach up to cradle his face in both of your hands. "Hey."

His eyes meet yours again, and you brush a raindrop off of his cheek with your thumb.

"Ginger or chamomile?"

\-------------------------------------

Dib's still fast asleep by the time the two of you get back upstairs to your apartment.

The rainfall must have been loud enough to drown out all the drama that happened outside in the parking lot. But then again, Dib's always been a heavy sleeper. He doesn't stir when you open your bedroom door and let his father look inside. He doesn't stir when Membrane staggers across the room and carefully sits himself down beside him on the bed. And when his father reaches out to touch him, to prove to himself that this is all real and his son is safe and _alive_, Dib doesn't even flinch. He just lies there, deep in dreams with a peaceful smile on his face. And all Membrane can do is sag in relief and smile back at his oldest child.

There's a hint of sorrow in his eyes.

You quietly leave the doorway and get to making that tea.

Membrane sits there for a very long time, keeping still and watching Dib breathe in the peaceful quiet of your bedroom. He's not sure how much time passes until he's finally able to pull himself away from his sleeping son, but when Membrane walks back out to your living room, there's a towel and a hot cup of chamomile waiting for him on the dining island. You're outside on your balcony, already dried off and in a fluffy bathrobe, smoking a cigarette in thoughtful silence as the rain starts to let up.

Now that's a bit of a surprise to him. He's never seen you smoke before. You never seemed like you were the type. Then again, you've thrown a lot of curveballs his way tonight.

You're not who he thought you were. But then again, he's not who you thought he was.

When you catch sight of him staring at you through the glass, you put out your cigarette and come back inside, sitting down next to him on the sofa. "How's your head?" you ask as he shrugs his lab coat off.

"Well," he replies as he starts to dry himself off, "It's still a little tender, but I don't believe I have a concussion."

"Then I guess I'll just have to try harder next time."

_"Please don't."_

The two of you laugh together, keeping your voices low so you don't disturb the sleeping child next door. But it doesn't last. The fire between the two of you has died down, but there's still a heaviness in the air. The night may be dwindling away to a close, but you both know that this situation won't heal so quickly. Dib's going to need some time. Time for what, neither of you can really say. But you feel it. You both do.

"How are Clembrane and Foodio holding up?" you ask.

"They're fine. Just....just worried." Membrane sits back on the couch and looks down at his mug. "I texted them earlier to let them know I'm staying over for a little while. They both want to see Dib, but for the time being they're going to give him a little space."

A thought occurs to you, and you straighten up in fear. "Where's Gaz?"

Membrane takes a sip of his tea. "Gamer's Club."

You close your eyes and let out a breath of relief. That's right. You forgot that was yesterday night.

Back in March, during a Skool event for parents, you found out about a new club a few students had started so they could play video games together. Over a glass of punch, you had made a comment to Gaz about how fun it might be to attend a meeting. She had scoffed and given you her usual snarky reply, but within a week she had caved in and signed up. When you found out about it, she had insisted, without any prompting from you or anyone else, that it was just a way to get free food and try out games she herself didn't own yet. Nothing more, nothing less.

She was lying, obviously. Gaz is a hard girl to read, but you've known her long enough to see that Gamer's Club was one of her favorite things ever.

When summer started, it was decided that the weekly meetings would continue through sleepovers at each student's home. And that meant that she hadn't been there last night to witness the fallout after Dib's discovery. Somewhere in the city, Gaz is sleeping peacefully after a night of binging on pizza and clearing levels. She's completely unaware that her family is falling apart, and she has no idea that her brother won't be there to greet her when she goes home in the morning.

The thought makes your heart ache. Gaz is the toughest kid you know, but she's still a little girl. No child deserves this uncertainty.

Another thought occurs to you."...Is....is she a - ?"

"No." 

Membrane cuts you off almost immediately, and your gaze shifts back to him. He sits there for a moment or two before he downs the rest of his tea in one long drink. Scratching the back of his neck in discomfort, he sets the mug down on the coaster on the coffee table, but doesn't look at you. "No, she's not a clone. It was about twelve years ago now. There was a woman in my life. She was smart, strong, passionate...._beautiful_..." His voice is heavy with nostalgia, and his gaze is distant and soft as he thinks about her, whoever she was. Then he closes his eyes and shakes his head slowly. "It didn't last. I wanted it to, but in the end, she left right after Gaz was born. I haven't heard from her since."

You absorb his words for a moment before looking out through the glass doors again. "Does Gaz know about the project?"

"Not yet." He runs a hand over his face, suddenly looking a lot older than he actually is. "I don't know how I'm going to explain this to her...but I _am_ going to tell her. She deserves to know the truth." His voice is heavy with regret, and he turns back to you. "You _all_ deserved to know the truth."

Neither of you know when it happens, and neither of you know who initiates it first, but you suddenly find yourself leaning into him, his arms thrown over you and his head leaning on top of yours. It might be the lack of sleep and the alcoholic drink from earlier talking, but this intimacy doesn't feel awkward one bit. It feels natural. It feels right.

"I messed up," Membrane murmurs into your hair. "I messed up, and now my son has to pay for it." He hugs you a little closer and whispers your name. "What have I _done?_ What on Earth am I going to do now?"

"It's gonna be okay," you respond. You lay your head on his chest, listening to his heart beat. "We'll figure it out. The important thing right now is that we're both there for Dib while he's going through this."

"How can I be there for him if he doesn't want anything to do with me?"

"Storms don't last forever. Whether he likes it or not, he's going to have to talk to you about this eventually. He's going to want to know more about himself, and what this means for him." You tilt your head to look up at him. "Be there for him when he comes back. Show him that no matter what happens, no matter what he chooses to do now, you'll always be right there waiting for him. Until then, all you can do is be patient and give him some space." You sigh. "He's gonna have to work things out by himself for a while before he's ready to talk to you."

"You make it sound so easy," he comments, looking down at you.

You smile sadly. "Nothing's ever easy, Chief. But you gotta fight for what you want." You glance off to the side. "Even if you don't get it in the end."

"....Why did I do this?" He groans and covers his face, and the weariness comes off of him in waves. "Why did I think it was a good idea to hang on to those STUPID notes?"

"You were so preoccupied with whether or not you could, you didn’t stop to think if you should."

He looks back at you, quirking an eyebrow in exasperation. "You really do like your movie quotes, don't you?"

"You're the one who caught the reference," you shrug. "What does that say about you?"

The sass in your voice makes him crack up, just a little. Just enough to feel a little less afraid about the future than before. "Fair enough," he responds.

The two of you settle back into a comfortable silence, but you know that sooner or later, you're both going to have to catch some sleep. He needs to leave before Dib wakes up, and Gaz still has to be picked up from her sleepover as well. Membrane looks down at your hand and carefully reaches out to hold it. "I think it would be best if Dib stayed with you for a while."

You intertwine your fingers in his. "That's fine."

"I don't know - I'm not sure when or _if_ he wants to come home." He bites his lip. "The problem is, this could end up being a longer term arrangement than you think."

"I know," you nod. "But that's okay. Dib can stay for as long as he needs to."

Membrane blinks in surprise. He knows the bond between you and his son is a strong one, but there are things on the horizon that you might need to think about soon. Skool, money, food, clothes, all of the intricacies and complications that come with raising a child, both seen and unforeseen. He's wondering if you've considered them all. "Are you sure?" He swallows, both anxious and moved. "This doesn't...you're under no obligation to...If it comes to that, I-I can't ask you to - "

"And you don't have to."

His eyebrows fly up when you turn to him and hold his face in your hands again. Your eyes are deathly serious, but there's not a trace of malice to be seen. "I know there's a lot to consider, and that it might get hard down the road. For him, and for the both of us. But Dib came to me for a reason. He trusts me, he feels safe here, and right now, this is the best place for him to stay while he figures stuff out." You lean a little closer, and your eyes soften. "I made you a promise, and I intend to keep it. Until he's ready to come home, he can stay here. I'll take care of your son, Chief. I won't let anything happen to him."

The sincerity in your words resonates through his body, and he's filled with a strange warmth that leaves his insides light and his mind blank.

And suddenly he knows exactly what to do next.

Running on instinct, Membrane places his hands on your shoulders, pulls you closer and crashes his lips into yours.

Your eyes widen in surprise, but his eyes close at the sensation of the kiss. It feels like fire, and it feels like lightning, and it feels like forever just ended and started at the same time. It feels like a thousand and one different things, most of which he can't even begin to describe, but all are wonderful and leave him breathless and full to bursting. You feel a little dizzy as he deepens the kiss and holds you closer, his fingers getting tangled in your hair as he tilts your face upwards for a better angle. But after a moment of cluelessness, you throw your arms around his neck and kiss him back, just as hard and twice as passionately.

When you two finally pull away from each other, flushed and panting, he's still very reluctant to let you go. Having you there in his arms feels right. Being there with you feels right. His family will never be the same after tonight, and the thought of the unknown, of the unpredictable and uncontrollable, terrifies him to his core. But having you there, knowing you support him AND his son...it makes him feel safe.

The clock chimes three AM on the wall, and the two of you are looking into each other's eyes, foreheads touching as you both try to catch your breath. Neither of you want to separate. Both of you wish that it didn't have to happen like this.

Both of you deeply regret the fact that, with the way things are now, what you two share can't really go much further than this kiss.

But it's not about him, and it's not about you. It's about Dib. He's what matters right now. He comes first. You both understand and accept that fact.

Finally, after a brief eternity, Membrane speaks. "...Thank you," he says quietly.

He watches you stand up, bend down low, and give him a soft, sweet peck on the forehead. Gently, lovingly, you bring him close, breathe in his scent, and whisper one last thing in his ear before you retire to your bedroom:

"Get some sleep."

\-----------------------------------

He wakes up right when the clock strikes seven.

Membrane peels himself off of your couch, rubbing his eyes and running a hand through his hair. Four hours. Not nearly enough sleep as he needed, but he feels refreshed enough to be able to go back home. There he can let Clembrane and Foodio know about the situation and rest a little more before he picks Gaz up from Gamer's Club at ten thirty. As he folds up the guest blanket and takes his mug to the sink and washes it, he stops to look outside the window.

The rain has stopped. The sun has risen, but the storm has left the city in a dense fog. It's the kind of fog that swallows people up the moment they step out the door, the kind that leaves them utterly clueless as to where they came from or where they're going.

If he believed in omens, then he would find something strangely meaningful about this fog.

....Despite the ominous mist, birds are singing cheerfully outside. As he looks out at the obscured city, he sees a bright red cardinal fly past your window.

Something about that feels meaningful, too.

He washes his face in the kitchen sink and grabs his lab coat where it had been left to dry by the curtains. Before he leaves, he decides to turn back for one last thing.

Your bedroom door doesn't make a sound when he opens it slowly, and neither you nor Dib stir even a little when Membrane pokes his head in and gazes at the two of you for a moment. Dib is curled up in your sheets, snoozing in a little ball like he often does, and you're right beside him, arm thrown over him protectively as you mumble dreamy nonsense into your pillow. Membrane watches the two of you sleep together in your bed. He does this for a long, long time.

He wants to stay. He wishes he could.

But he can't.

He takes one last look before he closes the door and lets you both sleep.

As he makes his way out of your apartment, he thinks about variables. He thinks about all of the possibilities that are now outside of his control, all of the things that are waiting for him in a future he can no longer even hope to predict. He thinks about a life without his son, and a life where his son comes back home and never leaves again. He thinks about you raising Dib on your own in your little apartment, and he thinks about what it might be like to raise Dib and Gaz together under the same roof as one family. He thinks about love. He thinks about mistakes. He thinks about forgiveness, and trust, and whether he's truly worthy of either.

There are so many things he just doesn't know right now.

But he does know one thing:

Right now, his son is exactly where he needs to be, and with whom he needs to be with.

And with that, Membrane takes one last look up at your apartment before starting the ignition and driving off into the unknown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 09/24 guys i keep making small edits to this chapter but now officially i'm going to STOP. i'm sorry. i'm a perfectionist and want to make this as cute as possible but from this date forward no more changes. promise. if you're rereading this i hope you did like the small edits. it was really miniscule stuff like typos, sentence flow and a few more shippy moments. so i hope you enjoyed those!
> 
> Special thanks to **glossomer-arts, whose lovely work of fanart inspired this whole story:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> **here it is again:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> **and again:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> **and again:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> **one last time for good luck!:** https://glossomer-arts.tumblr.com/post/187287694850/dib-doesnt-deserve-the-shit-he-gets-this-plays
> 
> Without this art this story might not have happened. And some of the dialogue is directly from that piece of fan art. Please show the original artist your love and support! If you're reading this, thank you for inspiring me! I hope you continue to make lots of beautiful art in the future!
> 
> **i also want to give a special thank you and shout out to halasige from the IZ discord server i'm a part of. they were generous enough to read through my fic and give me some tips on how to improve it! if you're reading this, thank you for your kindness and your feedback! it means a lot to me as a writer!**
> 
>   
**The quote "I'm gonna lose my temper now" was sort of taken/inspired by the scene between Mr Fox and Mrs Fox from Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr Fox: ** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azJi8hIgk54
> 
> it's a good scene and i couldn't resist making a shout out to it.
> 
> **The quote "You were so preoccupied with whether or not you could, you didn’t stop to think if you should" was ripped from Jurassic Park: ** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PLvdmifDSk
> 
> it's not the exact quote, but, come on. this is fanfiction. this is a lawless storytelling medium and i am a renegade storyteller. artistic liberties, my dudes.  

> 
> Songs That Inspired This Chapter  

> 
> **The Hills, by The Weeknd:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzTuBuRdAyA  
this helped me get a general feel for the chapter and the confrontation scene between Reader and Membrane.
> 
> **Tell Me Lies, from Cats Don't Dance, (but this cover is by Elsie Lovelock):** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS1Ox6wh5lw  
I named the chapter after this. It's a good song!
> 
> **Carry On, by XXXtentacion:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pc_p9Xrwryc  
If the relationship between Reader x Membrane in this chapter was a song, this would be it. Tender, emotional, full of pain, betrayal and frustration, but still ultimately a love song.
> 
> **Nice Monsters and Scary Lights, by Gentleclod:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChQMKXH11Go
> 
> **Get You The Moon, by Kina:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTsmIbNku5g
> 
> **Letting Go, by Greafer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOy1esPEc08
> 
> **El Manana, by The Gorillaz:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJrbeHQxPTA
> 
> **Take Me Home, by Phil Collins:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDjqKg3pcOg
> 
> **Black Flies, by Ben Howard:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wewmoql_sUo
> 
> i think that's all, but i might add more later.
> 
> Thank you for staying with me and supporting me as I've written this, and as always, thank you for reading!


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